She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Rewatch 3.1, "The Price of Power"

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After a short second season, the series resumes--and grows more serious.

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3.1, "The Price of Power"

Written by Noelle Stevenson, Shane Lynch, Josie Campbell, Katherine Nolfi, and Laura Sreebny
Directed by Roy Burdine and Steve Cooper

Synopsis

It's enough to disturb, certainly.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Adora sleeps fitfully in Bright Moon as Shadow Weaver looks over her. She wakes, confronting the obviously ill Shadow Weaver, who collapses.

Angella and Castaspella make to interrogate the now-captured Shadow Weaver, conferring briefly. They are joined by Glimmer, Adora, and Bow, and Adora presses to be admitted to the interrogation; Angella refuses all three of them, citing safety concerns. Adora tries to puzzle out the situation, and Glimmer tries to support her mother's decision. Adora tries to sneak in, regardless, but is interdicted. For her own part, Shadow Weaver refuses to answer the questions put to her by Angella, saying she will only speak to Adora.

Also a disturbing way to wake up.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

In the Fright Zone, Catra wakes imprisoned in the cell that had held Shadow Weaver. She considers her circumstances briefly before Scorpia makes to free her; Catra is to be punished publicly. Catra refuses the effort in despair and mocks Scorpia's concern.

Adora persists in her desire to defy Angella's edict and visit Shadow Weaver, sneaking away from her friends in the night--repeatedly and unsuccessfully. She argues to her friends that others in the Horde deserve the same chance at redemption that she was offered; Glimmer and Bow are moved by the argument.

Another wonderfully disturbing thought, this.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Interrogation continues, with Shadow Weaver resisting the relatively inept attempts of Angella and Castaspella to elicit information. The captors confer about their captive's status and likely motivations. Bow distracts Angella and Castaspella while Glimmer and Adora sneak in to question Shadow Weaver. Shadow Weaver tries to manipulate Adora into aiding her, and Adora is motivated to heal her, despite not knowing how to do it. Shadow Weaver offers to teach her magic and control.

Entrapta makes her case.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

In the Fright Zone, Entrapta reports to Hordak about her progress, noting new technology and asking for Catra to retrieve it. Hordak notes Catra's failures, which Entrapta refutes based upon the Horde's overall improved performance. Hordak is not quite convinced.

Adora struggles with Shadow Weaver's lessons before being interrupted by Angella's angry entrance. She does accomplish the healing, however, restoring Shadow Weaver; Shadow Weaver confesses that she has been betrayed and cast out, and she details Hordak's plan to summon his fellows through a portal he means to build. Entrapta's skills are noted as key to Hordak's plans, and Adora is cited as evidence that portals can work. She flees from the revelation, seeking advice from Light Hope and finding confirmation of Shadow Weaver's account--as well as fatalistic discourse.

Adora returns to Bright Moon with questions. She purposes to quest for answers; Glimmer and Bow move to accompany her. And in the Fright Zone, Catra challenges Hordak; he has agreed to Entrapta's plan, and he sends her to the same place for which Adora is bound: the Crimson Waste.

Discussion

There is an interesting issue handled in the episode. As Adora continues to try to talk to Shadow Weaver, Glimmer and Bow counsel her to do otherwise, noting that Shadow Weaver is evil because she is from the Horde; Adora replies that she is, herself, from the Horde and opines that she is only accepted because she is She-Ra. The language used in the exchange parallels many of the less fortunate discussions of race and ethnicity: "You're not like them," Adora is told, not unlike the "You're one of the good ones" trotted out unthinkingly by people who belong to prestige groups as they talk to people of other groups (such as attested here and here among many, many other places). Going back to the idea of Adora as Arthurian amalgamation (and the healing scene brings Lancelot to mind, among others), I find myself thinking of Sir Palomides, the Middle Eastern outsider acknowledged as a worthy member of Arthur's court--seemingly the only one in such narratives as Malory's. It is the case that race and ethnicity were considered differently in the European medieval than they are now, but it is also the case that the lines were as problematic, though drawn in different places. Palomides is "one of the good ones" no less than Adora, and if they are accepted because they assimilate:

1. The reminder that they are "the good ones" is a reminder that they may not always be perceived so, and
2. Others might similarly be among "the good ones," frustrating the kind of sharp division that too many people want to see between too many groups.

Perhaps the only clear line to be drawn is between those who want such sharp divisions (largely because they overtly desire supremacy or tacitly benefit from it) and those who know that matters are more nuanced and mixed.